


False Comfort

by LeopardFire



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series
Genre: Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:46:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25859923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeopardFire/pseuds/LeopardFire
Summary: Mitsuru picks up the pieces after October 4th and turns to Ikutsuki for advice.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	False Comfort

“Gang violence seems the most believable cause. Our reports confirm that he was often sighted around the alleys, even during school hours.”

Gang violence? Believable? Mitsuru gazed at the empty dorm lounge. Normally she would make important calls in her room. However, several hours had passed since the Aragaki’s death and the other SEES members had shuffled, dead-eyed, to their rooms to process the events that had transpired. Hearing the many, many phone calls she had needed to make certainly wouldn’t have aided in that.

Details of Aragaki’s former existence lingered everywhere - chew toys he had purchased for Koromaru in supposed secret, a pile of cookbooks for beginners left casually on the bar counter after yet another of Yamagishi’s baking attempts gone wrong. No, not a single person who truly knew Aragaki would ever accept such a flimsy explanation. But those who knew him were the same people who had to cover up his death to begin with, so Mitsuru swallowed the lump forming in her throat and answered in what she prayed was a calm tone.

“Very well. I trust you will pass along this information to the officials at Gekkoukan?”

“Of course. Kirijo-san-” the voice on the other line hesitated. “Nevermind. Goodnight.”

The frustration grating his words spoke what had remained unsaid. While Misturu had left most of the battle prep to Arisato after his arrival, her experiences visiting the police station had convinced her that Officer Kurosawa was hardly fond of the role he found himself in, selling weapons to underage teenagers. But the Kirijo Group’s iron grip reached deep into the roots of Port Island- had he refused, there was no doubt they could find another officer to do their bidding.

He always feared a day like this would come, and that he would be powerless to stop it. Mitsuru understood such misery well, having spent the last two years waiting for this exact scenario. The death of Amada’s mother, an innocent civilian, had caused her to realize the same fate could occur just as easily to anyone on the team.

She sat in the lounge's silence for a while, fearing that she would break into tears if she let herself make any sudden movements. She couldn’t cry yet - any signs of weakness now may carry on to tomorrow, and she had already told the junior members that it was essential that they go to school the next day. If she was the one forcing them to suppress their grief, it was up to her to set an example.

But the stillness caused her eyes to wander, landing on the item laid out on the table in front of her - Aragaki’s evoker. For the sake of creating a plausible crime scene, his body and possessions remained in the alley, but something so precious to the Kirijio Group was the sole exception. Mitsuru figured there was a twisted logic being followed in her finally getting it back from him, seeing that she had never intended to give him one in the first place.

_"I said you couldn’t tell anyone about this!” Mitsuru snapped._

_It had been a week and already the new recruit had managed to make a major misstep. She had feared this would happen when the team expanded outside of the Kirijo domain, especially when he ended up being a middle schooler. It didn’t matter that they were the same age- Mitsuru knew she was on an entirely different level than him. After all, she had been raised in the shadow of the entire experiment. This kid knew nothing of what was at stake._

_“I haven’t told anyone who doesn’t need to know! But I couldn’t lie to Shinji. He would end up finding the truth on his own, anyway.” Sanada seemed genuinely surprised at Mitsuru’s anger, as if she was supposed to trust this “Shinji” simply because he did._

_“Why_ not _? He could be out there spreading confidential information right this moment! We have to find him now!”_

_“He wouldn’t do that!” Sanada shot back, his voice rising with rage at the accusation. The two continued to glare at each other, only stopping at the sound of the voice of the third person present._

_“Now, now, everyone. What’s done is done. Before we jump to any conclusions, we should find him - not to interrogate,” he added at Sanada’s exasperated sigh, “but to secure his cooperation. Who knows - we could have another Persona user on our hands.”_

Ikutsuki. Ikutsuki. He surely had been informed of everything by now, and yet Mitsuru found herself reaching to dial his number anyway. She shuffled down her contact list, pausing at a certain name - “Father.” She froze, her finger hesitating. Mitsuru wasn’t fooling herself - she knew what she sought was not to give yet another report, but to receive comfort. To hear the words of someone who could reassure her that everything would work out in the end.

There was only one person she could trust to deliver that right now.

“Hello? Mitsuru-san? It’s quite late. Shouldn’t you be asleep?”

The gentle chastisement caused her previously tense body to sag into the sofa. “I will soon. I would just like to confirm everything has been settled, regarding…” her last word trembled and her voice trailed off.

“No need to worry - I’ve handled things on my end as best as our current circumstances allow. However, there are some details I would like to review myself if you find yourself able to.”

“Of course, Mr. Chairman. What do you want to know?”

She went over the basic timeline of events - Amada and Aragaki’s mysterious disappearance, Akihiko’s realization (an unnecessary detail, yet one Mitsuru felt she owed him to include) and hers that came soon afterward.

“Most of it was over by the time we arrived. Aragaki was still alive, but he was gone to us before the Dark Hour turned over.”

“I see. And no one else was hurt? Just Shinjiro-san?”

She thought of Aristato’s arms trembling as he escorted a wailing Amada away from the scene; his cool exterior finally thawed as the youngest SEES member’s cries echoed throughout the alley. Of Akihiko, his vest turning a darker red as he cradled Shinjiro’s body. Was he still wearing those bloodstained clothes now? Back at the scene, he had moved only after Mitsuru placed a hand on his shoulder, meeting her gaze with eyes so hollow she wondered if they would ever be full again. He and Amada had silently disappeared into their rooms upon arriving back at the dorm and no one had dared to disturb them since.

“Physically, the others are okay. But I doubt Amada or Akihiko will be in fighting condition in quite some time.”

“Really? Ken-kun I understand. But don’t you think you’re underestimating Akihiko-san a bit?” The surprise in Ikutsuki’s voice caught Mitsuru off-guard.

“You misunderstand,” she protested, “I just worry his mindset could lead to some rash decisions. That would put the team at risk. We’re already down a member as it is - we cannot afford another casualty.”

She worded her retort in a detached manner, but the various scenarios that flew through her mind caused her to shudder. What if Akihiko tried taking too many hits for the other team members? He was already prone to doing so already. What if he went to attack an enemy before Yamagishi finished analyzing it, and it had an ice affinity, and it-

“I understand your concern.” Ikutsiki’s tone had grown softer. “But this is Akihiko-san we’re discussing. Do you think he would just stay home just because you ordered him to?”

“...No.” She envisioned him waiting in the lounge for the team to take-off, intending to follow after them from a distance, and had to suppress yet another shiver.

“Denying him the chance for battle will only lead to more reckless behavior. Would you rather he go and fight by himself, or alongside allies who can keep him in check?”

Encouraging Akihiko to participate in SEES activities so soon after doing so had claimed his best friend - his _brother_ \- unsettled Mitsuru immensely. But countering the words of the club advisor felt even more wrong.

“Trust me,” urged Ikustki at her lack of a response. “The sooner life goes back to normal, the sooner everyone will begin to move on. Including you, as impossible as that might seem right now.”

“Very well. I appreciate the advice.” The words felt tight in her mouth.

“Of course. Now go to bed. I’m sure you will have a lot to attend to tomorrow. Goodnight.”

He hung up, leaving Mitsuru to look at the screen of her phone. 4 AM. Was it even worth trying to sleep? Sighing, she rose from the sofa. At the very least, she didn’t want to be found dozing off by one of the juniors in the morning. She had hoped that calling Ikutsuki would calm her nerves a bit, but instead, she felt more confused than before. What was the right approach to take with Akihiko? Was she being selfish, trying to protect him at the expense of the team’s strength?

She was just overwhelmed. Of course, Ikutsuki only had the best of intentions - for her, for Akihiko, for SEES as a whole. After relying so heavily on him all these years, who was she to question his logic?

 _Aragaki would agree with you._ The thought whispered itself before she could contain it.

Aragaki was dead.

Mitsuru swallowed her doubt and headed towards the stairs.

**Author's Note:**

> I often think about how badly Ikutsuki's betrayal must have hurt the seniors, especially Mitsuru. He was basically the only reliable adult figure in their lives on a day-to-day (and Dark Hour-to-Dark Hour) basis. I wish the game showed more foreshadowing of his actions, such as seemingly well-intentioned advice that actually served his desire to complete his personal agenda as soon as possible. This fic aimed to show what that could look like. Thanks for reading!


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